"So you've known this guy how long?" Scully leaned against the car door.

"Since my Oxford days: he gave a lecture on parapsychology." Mulder looked down into the crater that used to be the town of Sunnydale, "He seemed to know more than he let on, so I made a point on finding him afterwards and asking some questions I couldn't risk during the lecture. He smiled, and asked me if I truly knew what I was asking about?"

"What did you say?"

"I told him about my sister: he said that wasn't his area of expertise. We exchanged addressees, and have kept in touch over the years, trading little bits of information."

"And you think he can help us?"

"I've done a little digging over the years: there's more to Rupert Giles than just a librarian." Mulder looked round to where a car was approaching along the same road they had taken, "Someone's coming..."

"Your friend?" Scully drew her gun, wishing she had more than a single magazine of ammo.

"Not sure." Mulder looked on as the battered black convertible pulled to a stop, "He had a motorbike last time I saw him..."

"Fox?" An English voice called from the car.

"Rupert?" Mulder smiled, "Long time no see."

"Quite." Giles got out of the car and walked over, "I hope you don't mind meeting out here: being seen with two fugitives from federal justice would probably get my work permit revoked." He smiled, "Not that I believe for a moment that you'd really murder someone."

"Likewise." Scully cautiously put the gun away, "Mulder says you can help us get out the country..."

"Indeed." Giles pulled a manila envelop from his jacket and handed it to Mulder, "Passports, drivers' licenses, and credit-cards with $10,000 limits; everything you need."

"How good are they?" Mulder asked, checking them over.

"Perfect." Giles saw the way the two former FBI agents looked at him, "I mean that: they are literally perfect. I have a friend who was able to hack into a few 'secure' systems and have them issued by the appropriate authority." He smiled, "She also removed you identities from a few key systems: Fox Mulder and Dana Scully no longer exist as citizens of the United States of America. There may be hard-copy records of you at a few secret installations, but no computer on the planet will recognize you."

"Your friend that good?" Scully asked skeptically.

"There are more things in heaven and earth, than are dreamt of in your philosophy." Giles smiled, "And that brings me to the other reason for me being here: I have a job offer for the two of you."

"What kind of job?" Mulder asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Research for the most part, maybe a little training." Giles handed over a pair of airline tickets, "Mexico City to Rome: you want the job, use them."

"Who would we be working for?" Mulder asked, intrigued.

"Technically an organization called the Travers Foundation." Giles took off his glasses and cleaned the lenses, "But you'll report either to me or one of my assistants."

"And what will we be researching?" Scully asked skeptically.

"The same as you've been researching these past ten years, only without the bureaucracy, red tape and deliberate misdirection." Giles put his glasses back on, "The offer is always open, no string attached." He walked back to the car, "My new e-mail address is in the envelope if you ever need to contact me. Look after yourself Fox: the truth is out there, if you know where to look." He got in the car and drove off.

"Well?" Scully asked, hands on hips.

"Fancy some Italian for dinner tonight?"

The End

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